Yesterday was the forty-eighth anniversary of the Chappaquiddick incident, where Ted Kennedy left Mary Jo Kopechne to die a slow death of asphyxiation in his submerged vehicle.

Here is Ted Kennedy’s non-mea culpa, notable for how little of the details of the incident he could recall, and an example of how to appear to take responsibility while not taking responsibility.

Any other American who failed to report a lethal accident such as this for such a lengthy period would probably have served some jail time, county or prison. Any other politician would have had his career destroyed. When Kennedy died he was referred to as “The Lion of the Senate” and Cardinal O’Malley presided over his canonization funeral mass. I hope Ms. Kopechne received justice in the next world because she certainly received none in this. I make the same statement in regard to Mr. Kennedy, who in later years liked to joke about Chappaquiddick. I trust that in the world beyond he no longer finds those jokes quite as funny.

Update: Brian Cates has a series of tweets, go here to read them, which pull together the facts of Chappaquiddick.

17 Comments

I hope Mary Jo got mercy in the next life. That of course will mean justice for Teddy. If he repented at the end of his life, then good. But he’s a Democrat and I expect that rare is the occasion when a Democrat would repent. Sorry, folks, only telling it the way I see it. Baby murdering. Negligent homicide. Adultery and fornication and drunkeness. That’s Teddy’s legacy.

The facts of this story are stunning. I constantly hear how things are so much more polarized now. Give me polarization any day if it means events like this aren’t simply allowed to be brushed aside. This is a compelling reason why the power of the MSM had to be broken. This site, among others, is the antidote to that power.

In the early 90’s, after the fall of the Soviet Union and the subsequent
opening of their archives, a reporter for the London Times discovered
documents proving Ted Kennedy colluded with the Soviets in attempt to
undermine President Reagan and enhance Kennedy’s own ’84 run for the
presidency. It’s no surprise that the Democrats were absolutely uninterested
in investigating a Senator of their own party who had engaged in treason.
As with Chappaquiddick, Kennedy again evaded justice in this case.

Oh, how times have changed! For today, the Democrats are very much for
investigating politicians who might have colluded with Russia, no matter
how spurious the case might be. Yet I suspect it’s not because our Democrat
politicians have somehow developed a newfound thirst for justice…

I agree this site and others can be part of the antidote. “Give me polarization any day if it means events like this aren’t simply allowed to be brushed aside.” Me too. A
I hope the events surrounding, absolutely surrounding, the Clintons will not be simply allowed to be brushed aside.
Also hopefully the revelation of so much rot in our church and our government will not sap our strength, but energize our faith.
In some Faustian legends, the intercession of the Blessed Virgin saves even the sinners–true to Mother’s love.

Joseph P. Kennedy was a bad man. At least three of his sons were bad men. Some of those his children married were bad, wrecked, or implicated to varying degrees in the family badness. About 30% of his grandchildren have a history of scuzzy behavior (lucky for us the worst of them have been too inconsequential to do much damage outside their own households). Most of the bad actors were not lone wolves. They had a camarilla of enablers. The enablers have something for which to answer as well. A dear friend of mine (afilliated with New York’s garment unions) met Robert Kennedy in 1964 while he was campaigning for the Senate (a campaign on which my friend was employed). He said Robert Kennedy interacted with those around him in an appalling manner and when he ran for President my friend was pounding the pavement for Eugene McCarthy. People with well-ordered sensibilities did not need much time around these creatures to see them for what they were.

One enabler who has a great deal to answer for (and, IIRC, has publicly confessed) was the prosecutor in Barnstable County, Massachusetts who did not secure an indictment for vehicular manslaughter. Others who have much to answer for are the creatures in the Massachusetts political establishment who were working the phones leaning on this man. Others include the reporters and editors treating this travesty as if it were merely an embarrassment (And did you catch the revolting commentary Adam Clymer offered in his biography of Fredo Kennedy?). I do not think the Kopechnes did all they could, either.

Part of dear Teddy’s last letter to P Benedict XVI had to include the comment (verbatim) that seemed to excuse himself for doing things ‘his way’ (“I’ve always tried to be a faithful Catholic, Your Holiness. And though I have fallen short through human failings I’ve never failed to believe and respect the fundamental teachings of my faith.”) Rather, as a teacher of mine once used to observe, “So, you’ve honored the rules ‘in the breach'”?

Ted could never be expected but to fully and amply forgive himself for whatever he had done. Or not done. In his wretched bellowing life.

“Robert Kennedy interacted with those around him in an appalling manner and when he ran for President my friend was pounding the pavement for Eugene McCarthy. People with well-ordered sensibilities did not need much time around these creatures to see them for what they were.”

Looks like RFK’s son Chris isn’t doing much better at this point in his run for governor of Illinois:

I doubt he’s cut out for public life and do no know why (at the age of 54) he’s doing this. His cousin Edward Jr. elected a p/t position in the Connecticut legislature, which seems more appropriate. Edward and Christopher are (by all appearances) the most capable of the Kennedy grandchildren and neither has been a source of scandal. Christopher Kennedy also undertook one small act that few college trustees of any description would undertake: he persuaded the University of Illinois to deny the honorific ’emeritus’ to Wm. Ayers. I’m disinclined to cut the man up for clumsy campaign appearances.

Steve Phoenix 🙂 of course you don’t think there could be thugs and kingpins still plying their trade in Heaven! God nor heaven will change, rounding down to suit us– it’s the cleansing process the purgation that could only make it possible for me to be there to meet you someday.

Anzlyne, I am pretty sure I know what you think about “heaven”, and I am pretty sure, based on what the Catholic Church informed me, at least in its teachings up to 1962, about what heaven is comprised of and what obligations are ours to cooperate with God’s grace in obtaining it—but I just don’t think people like Ted Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Hilliary Clinton or Barack Obama, and many other political thugs and kingpins, can possibly conceive of a “heaven” that hasn’t already reserved a space enthroning them in its highest pantheon, there, as here in this life. Cant conceive of it at all.
…
That “heaven”, like Atahualpa the Incan chief reputedly rejecting the Christian Faith because Pizarro affirmed that he, Pizarro, would be “heaven”, I shall defer if those 😈 are there.

Prior to the funeral, I had thought Cdl. O’Malley to be a man of some integrity. When he had the chance to make a powerful statement of behalf of the Church by insisting on a private funeral for Sen. Kennedy (as provided for by canon law in the matter of public sinners), he bailed. I rather imagine he has some contemplation to do regarding his actions.

Prior to the funeral, I had thought Cdl. O’Malley to be a man of some integrity.

In 2004, a disaffected Traditionalist priest of my acquaintance had this to say about the episcopacy, “It’s like the Masons. You don’t rise in the organization unless you commit a crime.” Crazy remark, I know, but I really don’t blame him anymore.